Damned, 64 times
by Acalanthis
Summary: A collection of responses to the ljcommunity 64damnprompts.
1. 01 Illusions

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts).

**01 Illusions**

**Theme:** #19 – itch

**Characters:** Zuko, Katara

**Warnings:** reference to minor sexual content

**Rating: R – M**

He keeps telling himself that he is merely scratching an itch, that what they do is purely physical - no strings attached, no emotions involved. Really, there is nothing to it. It is all about release; to a certain degree it is about control, too, but mostly, it is about scratching.

Because he has tried to take care of this problem himself, but nothing he can do is as satisfying as the things _she_ does to him. Whether it is the way her hands ghost over his scarred face and the often self-inflicted injuries that speak of harsh training sessions or the feel of her breath rolling down his back in short, pleased gasps when her lips brush against his jaw or when her tongue traces the shell of his ear; to him it is as if he hadn't known pleasure until she shared her body with him.

As a lover - in the physical, not emotional sense - she is his perfect match. So is she when they fight: hand to hand, face to face and element to element, Katara of the Southern Water Tribe no longer requires the support of the full moon to tame Zuko's fire. The flames he doesn't conjure from his hands are an entirely different matter, however, and the young firebender is well aware of that. She is like the water she bends: gentle, pliant and cool. But even water can be brought to boil and he enjoys the sight of her writhing underneath his hard body, relishes every gasp and moan he coaxes from her lips and revels in the knowledge that he is the one to pleasure one of the most famous women in their world while others are resigned to lusting after her.

Their relationship _is_ only physical, of course, and _no one must know_ but he sees those glances their former travel companion gives her, the way the men of the court follow her every movement with hungry eyes and he can't help himself but taunt them, if only in the privacy of his mind. For it feels _so good_ to have what others want; to be the only one that may touch her thighs, to wrap them intimately around his waist, the only one to kiss those lips and drink deeply from them.

No, there are no emotions involved in their relationship, no strings attached. They're merely scratching their respective itches, seeking their pleasure.

So why does he wish he could be there in the morning, when she wakes? Why is he so desperate to keep the woman she has grown into by his side?

No, he tells himself as he watches her escort his uncle about the gardens, his heart lurching in an unfamiliar and unwelcome way, it's only physical.


	2. 02 Balance

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts).

**02 Balance**

**Theme:** #12 – children

**Characters:** Iroh

**Warnings:** none

**Rating: G**

All things need balance, for without it eventually existence will cease to be and everything will turn into nothing. Balance means that there is a certain order to things. The creation of Life, which is infinite, is opposed by Death, which shall remain so as well until Life is no longer created.

Both, Life and Death need each other.

Balance is essential: life and death, love and hate, creation and destruction, hope and despair, dark and light - without the balance of it's counterpart, either loses its purpose and therewith its basis for existence.

Balance means that there is a certain order to things and during the course of his life, Iroh has learned how important balance and order are.

More often than not, his lessons were painful ones, even traumatic. But the retired general always knew to acknowledge the worth of a lesson learned and it is this what he tries to impart on Prince Zuko, the banished heir to the Fire Nation's throne, although his achievements so far are disputable. For this, Iroh can fault neither the boy nor himself; it is not Zuko's fault that he was raised to dominate nor that he is too young (and too desperate) to sheath the blindness that comes with youth's vigor and just as well, it is not Iroh's fault that old age has robbed him of the strength necessary to tame the prince.

But what he does fault himself for is not speaking often and insistent enough and he resents Zuko's refusal to listen to and think about what he says. With a frown, the wizened firebender realizes that the young earthbender traveling with the Avatar might not be able to see, but unlike his nephew she is neither blind nor deaf. Because little Toph, Iroh could tell what to see, but young Zuko has to see and discover the truth with his own eyes, must not be influenced by others so that he can acknowledge and accept the nature of things in his own time. His own time - Iroh fears that the prince does not have much time left. (_And neither has he, but Zuko mustn't know that just yet._)

The mask, of course, was not a surprise. Neither the first nor the second time he discovered it in Zuko's possession. It only proofs what he knows is true: that even through his father's teachings (which could well be described as wicked, just as the teachings of their father could be), a part of Zuko inherently knows what is right and wrong. _May Agni smile upon and bless you, my dear Ursa, wherever your are..._ It is this part, that has assumed the persona of the Blue Spirit, this part that has set out to discover the truths the world has to offer and that is willing to compare and evaluate them.

It is this part, that will eventually lead the prince's steps towards love, towards the person that will balance out all the hate bottled up behind those hawk-like eyes and the flame shaped scar that, for the last couple of years, has loomed over the boy as a larger-than-life memento of shame or honor, of courage or cowardice - Iroh doesn't dare to speak it out loud.

Iroh believes that the children are the future for adults have already ruined the past and all things need balance.


	3. 03 An option worth choosing

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts).

**03 An option worth choosing**

**Theme:** #24 – fight / flight

**Characters:** Katara, Zuko

**Warnings:** none

**Rating: G**

The surprising part was not how soft she was (he'd always been certain she would be) or how well she fit against him (he'd often suspected she would), not even how much she understood about him and his life (because frankly, he'd never even dared to imagine that she might) but rather that Katara, who took on the world headfirst to fight for what she believed in, would back **down** to him of all people.

Fight or flight - neither he nor she had ever considered, would never consider the latter to be an actual option worth choosing. Or so he'd thought until she'd gone and surprised him, acquiesced to his request - after much verbal abuse on his part - and left him to his own devices.

He ought to be pleased. He ought to be enjoying the blessed silence. He ought to feel relieved.

Instead he walked over to the fire where she was currently busy stirring spices into their dinner, his shoulders drawn back and his head proudly held high, every inch the regal prince he was (if presently only in blood) and fixed her with the most challenging glare he could muster.

"Are you truly this pathetically weak or are you only acting it for my benefit, **Katara**?"

A myriad of emotions flutters across her face: surprise and disbelief closely followed by the tiniest of smiles and finally an answering sparkle in her beautiful, blue eyes.

'_Fight me_,' Zuko thinks as Katara bites out a venomous reply. '_Please fight me; never ever flee from me._'

Fight or flight - for them, the latter will never be an option worth choosing in any aspect of their lives.


	4. 04 A pleasant view, I want to pretend

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts).

**04 A pleasant view – I want to pretend**

**Theme:** #01 – 2 a.m.

**Characters:** Zuko, Katara

**Warnings:** reference to minor sexual content

**Rating: T**

He seems to be perfectly at home, lying nestled beneath those heavy sheets. Katara envies him for it because those very sheets, no matter whether they are crimson-colored like the Fire Nation's banner or pure white like freshly fallen snow, make her feel like a fish out of water.

Brushing against her bare skin the fabric feels sinfully exotic - but so does his hand resting intimately against her waist. Still, the waterbending master cannot shake the feeling that nothing good will come of enjoying these caresses. They are forbidden, she knows. '_And for a good reason, too_', she thinks, hushing her never-tiring conscience with empty promises of 'This is the last time' and 'We're not hurting anyone'.

It's a lie, of course, because she can _never get enough_ of watching the Fire Lord sleep.

It is a rather unspectacular thing, watching him sleep, and it can be only successfully done in the dead of night, when sleep has a firm hold on him, but it means the _world_ to Katara.

They fall asleep together, wrapped in each other's arms - skin to skin and breath to breath - but when all the candle's are burnt out and Yue is the only source of light left in the inky darkness of night, she wakes and her eyes trace the contours of his face, the shape of his body as tenderly as her hands would, were he awake, too. Because when he sleeps, the transformation is complete and Zuko is _completely hers_, masks carelessly cast aside.

He is _not_ the Fire Lord, hidden behind a screen of ruby and golden flames, impassive face and impossibly cold eyes; he is _not_ the firebending master that challenges her every time anew; he is _not_ the Blue Spirit, vigilant hero of her girlhood dreams.

_He is Zuko_; as much a man as she is a woman. Free of the bonds of the world, free of the duties all his masks impose on him, free to be resting next to her with nothing between them but a few sheets and the cool night air.

The Fire Lord will be forced to lose his 'heart' to a noble woman for he _mustn't waste his attentions on lowly peasants_; the firebending master is required to pass on the Inner Flame - he will belong to a woman of his own nation, eventually; the Blue Spirit belongs to the world (not Katara exclusively, although once she wished he did) and there simply _is no room left_ for love in his life.

All that remains is _Zuko_ - and when watching him sleep at nights, she can pretend that he loves her as much, as she loves him.

"I am wrong, Yue, I know," she tells the silvery orb in the sky, her heart heavy with regret. "But you must understand... I still want to pretend."


	5. 05 Watcher

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts).

**05 Watcher**

**Theme:** #10 – lull and storm

**Characters:** Zuko, Katara, Jet

**Warnings:** nudity, implied sexual situations, voyeurism

**Rating: R**

As the fabric fell off her body, whispering sweet promises of flesh against flesh and desperate touches, his eyes feasted on the smooth expanses of tanned skin. His hands clenched and unclenched jealously: he could not touch her.

Oblivious to his presence (it came as no surprise) she knelt next to the heap of clothes on the floor and folded them - because old habits die hard and she was meticulous like that. A shudder ran down his spine as her braid came undone (he wanted to touch, desperately wanted to touch but he **could not**) and the tiny beads she wore in it were carefully placed on top of the folded pile. With a quick move of her head, the luxurious hazel curtain was flicked behind her back, allowing his eyes to trace the curve of her jaw, the length of her neck and the slope of her breast. Because of course he couldn't touch her, although he wanted to.

She rose, her movement as graceful as the flow of her element and he found himself struggling to draw air into his lungs (which he shouldn't have to; she wasn't that beautiful) the urge to break free and reach for her became an unbearable strain on him and he was tempted, oh so tempted, to give in and touch her. Yes, he couldn't but damn he wanted to!

One, two steps and she lowered herself into the steaming water of the spring where pale hands and strong arms were already waiting and he felt bitterness rise like bile in his throat. Because he could touch her, he was allowed to and it wasn't fair because his love for her could not be greater than his own.

In the end, he did reveal himself, not at all surprised to see her eyes freezing over as she took a defensive stance, element at the ready and the firebender by her side, his fists glowing eerily (he had no such weapon, he thought morosely). Her voice was cold like the ice she had frozen him to that tree with and he reveled in the fact that his name once again fell from her lips.

"Jet."


	6. 06 Like a finely choreographed dance

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts).

**06 Like a finely choreographed dance**

**Theme:** #9 - connection

**Characters:** Iroh, Zuko, Katara

**Warnings:** none

**Rating: G**

_Tonight, Zuko is taking the lead and Katara the follow._

Politics and love, Iroh muses, have a lot in common with dancing. So does the relationship of the young fire lord and the ambassador he is so fond of.

While dancing to this particular kind of music (three tunes at the same time), only certain moves and steps are permissible. A sidestep, a pirrouette - the dancers move in perfect unison and harmony, as if the rhythm of the song is their heartbeat, the very air they breathe. And when they change directions, it is not abrupt or jarring but a natural movement, because really, there was no other way they could have moved. But while this allows one dance to blossom and bloom it cripples the other two and for each step politics goes forward, love remains behind.

The dance is not choreographed, not in the way those of the court's dancers are - where every smile, every movement is practiced und cued. The dance is theirs alone - beautiful and futile, horrible and admirable and neither of them knows where it'll take them, but they have their ways and means of communicating to each other when one wishes to change the direction.

_Zuko wants to change directions – but he is hesitant because he fears Katara might not follow._

They aren't visible ones, like a flick of the eyes or a nod or shake of the head, but through them, they are able to communicate, to share with the other what to do next so that their combined actions may flow together like poetry in motion. Iroh doesn't know what exactly it is, but it is there, hovering between them like an invisible thread that ties them together.

_They are connected in __that__ way._

He idly wonders whether the thread might be **red**, by any chance as he eyes the two young people sweeping gracefully over the dance floor.

They put a lot of effort into appearing like less than they are, but Iroh knows them both very well by now and he can see the little things most people of the court are not able to see - yet. Because they both want to spill their secret but they do not dare to. The wizened general knows youth's vigor and how hard it is to contain.

_Their every move screams for release, for the truth._

_But Zuko doesn't change directions, although he has the lead, and to be honest he doesn't even know whether he really wants Katara to follow._

He gives them until the next full moon, tops.

The signs are there, the ones that they cannot hide, the ones they do not think of hiding. They are ridiculously well-attuned to each other, noticing the presence of their counterpart even before he or she chooses to make it known to other, less perceptive occupants of the room. And their training sessions, which occur with increasing frequency (it is only a matter of time until they'll be a daily fixture in Zuko's schedule), have lost their air of friendly competitiveness replacing it with an electric intimacy instead.

_If the fire lord picks up the pace now, he might be forgiven._

The most obvious sign they cannot hide, however, is the fact that Zuko is perfectly comfortable with Katara invading his personal space. Zuko, who used to be so reserved and withdrawn and who now easily accepts (anticipates) and permits (revels in) even the slightest invasion on the waterbender's part whereas others are often shot down with a glare before they can even attempt to stretch into forbidden territory.

There is a certain exclusivity, too and this, Iroh knows, is already object to many rumors circulating through the court.

Not the exclusivity towards each other, for it is not seen as such, but their lack of suitors is well-noticed.

That the ambassador is a woman not easily wooed is a given: she is the _sister_ of the Southern Water Tribe's chief, she is a _friend_ of the Avatar and a _comrade-in-arms_ of the fire lord - three very powerful men who are all very protective of her.

_Of course_ the fire lord will _encourage_ any young man deemed unsuitable (any young man - period) to direct their attentions towards another young maiden instead of the ambassador and _of course_ he will generally try to _discourage_ any wooing of the ambassador at all.

It is his duty by association.

_It is his prerogative as her lover._

That the fire lord is a man not easily wooed is a given, too: his heritage is one reason. His background another; Zuko may be young, but he has seen much of the world and it takes a lot more than a finely powdered face, fancy robes and the sweet smell of flowers to impress him.

It is understood that the fire lord will not pick a wife for years to come, but he is young and healthy and so there is no real reason for worry or pressure.

But that he refuses even the services of women educated in the ways of physical pleasures? There has to be something wrong with a young man who's bed has been deprived of female company for 6 years and who shows no interest whatsoever in the most beautiful women of the court.

And he refuses to most handsome young men, _too_.

_Why shouldn't he if he has all he desires, all he needs – packed in a tan and blue little package – cradled firmly in his arms?_

This worries some of the royal advisers and it amuses the retired general, who knows better.

He watches Zuko bow to Katara as their dance - beautiful yet futile - finally comes to an end. Iroh is not worried.

_Their connection remains._

_Zuko has changed the direction and picked up the pace._

_Katara follows._


	7. 07 Restraint

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts).

**07 Restraint**

**Theme:** #20 - explode

**Characters:** Zuko, Katara

**Warnings:** implied (minor) sexual situation

**Rating: T**

She is never more beautiful or more alluring to him than when her eyes are alight with that particular light; when her cheeks flush rosily and she wrinkles her nose in the most adorable fashion.

Zuko struggles to resist her then. It doesn't help at all that lately, it is the only emotion, the only facial expression she seems to be capable of. Is she trying to drive him mad with want? Because great spirits above - he wants her so much it hurts.

He'd like to ask his uncle whether all women are like that, but they still pretend that he doesn't know and so the fire lord is resigned to watching the ambassador of the Southern Watertribe with carefully masked hunger in his eyes, is forced to restrain himself because right now, she refuses his touch and denies him hers. Although he needs her; although she knows he does.

That is until he manages to corner her alone (which is quite the accomplishment and he's appropriately proud of himself), arms wrapped tightly around her waist, his forehead resting against hers.

"You," he bites out through grit teeth, "have been driving me insane."

She responds with a smile.

"How so, your lordship?" she asks, faking innocent surprise.

"Your laughter," he groans, pressing her body as close as the heavy fabric of his robes will allow, like a man in need (which is exactly what he is.) "Your Agni-forsaken laughter - you don't even know what you do to me, do you?" the Fire Lord inquires, leaning in, his breath like a hot caress over her cheeks, tickling the edge of her lips.

The tiny part of him that is not preoccupied with reveling in the sensation of touching her numbly notes that his restraint is rapidly dwindling.

Katara shakes her head, chuckling softly and her inquisitive eyes meet Zuko's darkened ones. She knows that look, _of course_.

He elaborates and his detailed describtion of what she exactly (supposedly) puts him through brings forth a torrent of laughter that is quickly silenced by a passionate kiss forced onto her pliant lips and warm hands undoing her robes.

Restraint, Zuko muses as her hands fist in his hair and he loses control, is greatly overrated.


	8. 08 A prince's wet dream nightmare

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts). In the original formatting, I had the workd "dream" striked through, which unfortunately does not show. Therefore, I have marked the word as "-dream-" to indicate the strike through.

**08 ****A prince's wet -****dream-**** nightmare**

**Theme:** #27 - give

**Characters:** Zuko, Katara

**Warnings:** self-gratification, voyeurism (mention in passing), male hormonal teenager

**Rating: R**

Nightmares - that's what she gives him.

His uncle calls them 'wet dreams' or 'adolescent fantasies' but Zuko, almost 17 years old, knows better.

They are nightmares, alright, because they leave him wide-eyed and panting when he wakes in his sleeping bag, a rapidly familiar becoming sensation crawling over his skin. Sometimes these -dreams- nightmares draw a shout or a strangled cry out of his throat and he is glad that he isn't the only one suffering from this condition. It is the only time he and Sokka can tolerate each other (as long as Zuko doesn't end up shouting her name in a discernible manner because that might end their nightly kinship faster than Momo can eat a peach and that's saying something).

The -dreams- **nightmares** have a firm hold over him, even during the day. Daymares, he supposes. He has them mostly when they travel over long distances and his mind wanders or when he tries to meditate. He doesn't know which ones are worse, day- or nightmares, because they each have their ups and downs.

The daymares don't have him yelling her name (or making a mess out of himself in his sleeping bag) but they feel so real mostly due to the fact that he is incapable of completely tuning out her chattering voice and usually ends up banishing it to the back of his mind instead where her complaints are easily rephrased into declarations of want and need.

Often he has to remind himself that her voice hadn't been breathless when she said: "Zuko, I want you."

In fact it had been slightly annoyed and the original phrase had been: "Zuko, I want you and Sokka to get us dinner. Please try not to kill each other this time and don't get too close to the village. If all else fails, fish will be fine."

Funny how his brain keeps cutting off the rest of her sentence and makes him focus on the shape and color of her lips instead. The combination sets his blood on fire and during the day, there is nothing he can do to appease the burning. So he spends his waking hours in a heightened state of physical awareness where Katara is concerned and desperately hopes that no one notices.

In his -dr- nightmares following days like these, when he spent all day with the fire in his blood and no way to gather control over it, she does autracious things like standing over his sleeping bag, not a stitch of clothing to her (_beautiful, beautiful_) body, touching herself or inviting him to do so and kissing him and begging him to bend those flames out of her body because she is only a waterbender and doesn't know how to. He helps her because they are travel companions and that's what travel companions usually do.

Helping each other, that is.

Her soft gasps and moans fill the air, her limbs intertwined with his and he wakes when they come apart, her name on his lips and his thighs sticky with the proof of his desires.

Zuko's condition takes a turn to the worse when he accidentally spies on a bathing Katara touching herself the way he dreamed she might. It becomes a lot more dire when she playfully kisses his cheek one afternoon and by the time they emerge victorious from battle, there is no cure for Zuko.

But by then, what he and Katara do no longer gives him dreaded nightmares. In fact when asked by the right person, he might even confess to a certain degree of giddy anticipation.


	9. 09 Intermission

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts).

**09 ****Intermission**

**Theme:** #36 - reciprocity

**Characters:** Zuko

**Warnings:** none

**Rating: G**

The realization doesn't startle him as much as he pretends it does. Maybe because he always suspected that something like this would eventually happen.

He is surprised that no one noticed it yet, either. Surely it must show in his face or his mannerism that he is...

that Fire Lord Zuko is in love.

He tests the words in his bedroom, when he is alone.

"I'm in love," he whispers into the shadows; when the world doesn't end (which surprises him), he repeats it, louder and more forcefully.

"I'm in love."

And then he can't hold himself back anymore and he keeps saying it over and over again, louder and louder, until he all but bellows it into the darkness of his bedroom. He falls silent as the echoes of his screams reverberate around him.

Because he loves her.

And she doesn't even know.


	10. 10 To achieve what he wants

**Disclaimer:** I do not own or claim to own Nickleodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" or its associated characters. No profit is gained from the writing and publishing of this story but should the creators, legal owners, their solicitors or the site administration of deem this post offensive and request it's removal, it shall of course be taken down without hesitation.

The prompts that inspired all pieces of this collection belong to Rashaka and her community** 64damn-prompts** (written with an underscore instead of a dash) at livejournal. There they have been posted under the name 'kirschreich', which is the name of my writing journal.

**Author's Note:** Most of these pieces are set some time after the conclusion of the series. It is definitely a Zutara A/U. Although it does not seem like it, the individual snippets are in fact connected.

Ratings vary – corresponding warnings are included in every chapter.

Please note that this story features the regular community prompts, revisited prompts (meaning prompts that have been picked up a second time) and versus prompts (meaning drabbles containing/relating to two or more prompts).

**10 ****To achieve what he wants**

**Theme:** #34 - roads

**Characters:** Zuko, Katara

**Warnings:** minor sexual content

**Rating: R**

There are many roads to achieve what you want, but sometimes you will find that the road you are looking for is nowhere to be found on your map and so you will either have to look very hard and roam the surrounding areas or make a road for yourself.

It isn't that easy for Zuko, unfortunately.

There are customs, a protocol, even an entire nation that limit his possibilities (which seems paradox as he is the one ruling over said nation) and that place obstacles in his way.

He's young and energetic; he's a lot wiser than he was when he first set out to chase the Avatar and the remnants of his honor - but still he cannot find a way, no, the way he's looking for.

He is also easily distracted by sparkling blue eyes, tanned hands and skin soft as silk. His nights (and his bed) are often filled with shapely legs wrapped around his waist, with soft gasps of pleasure and incoherent cries of his name and more, faster, more, _please_. And even on those nights when he rests alone under his sheets, he can hear the cries of his lover, see her arching her back in a feline, almost feral manner, feel her lips brush against his and taste the sweetness of her skin, for even in his dreams he cannot be without her any longer.

And that is the reason why he is looking for that road; because _he_ simply can no longer _be without her_, no longer _wants to be without her_ and in fact won't allow _her_ to be able to _be without him_ any longer than strictly necessary.

So he looks for that road and almost despairs because between needing her and having her, he realizes that it is impossible for such a road to exist because everything in his nation, in its past and present, is set against what he wants.

He wants her. It's that simple. And he will not be denied.

Alright, he might run into some trouble with Sokka, but that is expected. That he can deal with. That he is looking forward to.

That he won't even be legally able to run into these troubles, however, is unacceptable.

Some days he asks himself _why_ he even wants to change a thing for when he kisses her throat and she trembles from his touch he is perfectly content with his lot in life. Very content.

But on other days, someone manages to draw a laugh from her or causes that sparkle in her eyes he is so fond of and he wants to tell them to _back off_ but he can't, not as forcefully as he wants to. He can't even make it known that she is not to be approached in such a manner - period - because he has no such claim over her.

Thus he is back to searching that road and it feels like chasing the avatar all over again because whenever he thinks he's got it, it vanishes into thin air, leaving him tired, cold and frustrated.

He is hopeful, however.

Because in the end, Zuko managed to catch up with the avatar. He is certain that the road he is looking for is no different.


End file.
